PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island --- Members of the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) unanimously elected Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch last month as its 101st President, earning him a place in history as the Association’s first President hailing from the nation’s smallest state.

“I am immensely honored to serve NAAG in this leadership capacity and eager to work with the new officers and NAAG’s entire membership to embark on the challenging work ahead,” President Lynch said.

Attorneys General also elected Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning as President-Elect; North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper as Vice President; and Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden as Immediate Past President for the 2008-2009 term.

Elections were held June 16-20 during NAAG’s 2008 Summer Meeting, where nearly 300 participants, including 40 Attorneys General and their key staff, met to discuss critical issues in law enforcement. Attorneys General met with Attorney General counterparts from Taiwan, Mexico and Canada to discuss human smuggling, domestic security and other cross-border issues; baseball legend and hall-of-fame inductee, Cal Ripken, Jr., urged partnerships with law enforcement; and the chief executive officers of several Rhode Island companies discussed corporate challenges and opportunities for joint public-private partnerships.

Outgoing NAAG President, Attorney General Wasden, delivered his final remarks and concluded his presidential initiative, “Providing Effective Energy Counsel to State Government; An Attorney General’s Perspective.” In a two-day conference held in May, President Wasden convened members of private industry, government, and the scientific community to discuss issues surrounding global warming, alternative forms of energy and increased energy demands.

Incoming President Lynch announced that his presidential initiative, The Year of the Child, will focus on propelling protections for young people, with a particular concentration on increasing safeguards in relation to technology.

“I am enlisting the assistance of my colleagues and good corporate citizens, and marshalling the resources of NAAG and other organizations, to increase protections, decrease risks, and encourage a more just and secure world for our children,” Attorney General Lynch said. “Technology has created a borders-free, global society that is advantageous in many respects. But it also exposes our children to potentially dangerous influences and information, and makes them more vulnerable to those who seek to exploit, victimize, and harm them. We will continue our work in fostering a safer social networking environment and in preventing predators and other criminals from using cyberspace as their own personal playgrounds.”

The Association also announced its annual award winners:

Oregon Attorney General Hardy Myers received the Kelley-Wyman Award, the Association’s highest honor given to the Attorney General who has done the most to achieve the objectives of NAAG;

The Marvin Award, given annually to individuals who serve on the staffs of state Attorneys General and who have furthered the goals of NAAG, was awarded to Iowa Assistant Attorney General Patrick Madigan and California Senior Assistant Attorney General Dennis Eckhart;

The Laurie Loveland Award was presented to Washington Assistant Attorney General Robert Fallis and Senior Litigation Counsel Ann Uglietta. The award recognizes individuals within an Attorney General’s office who have helped to advance the work of Attorneys General on tobacco-related issues.

Individuals from the Alabama, New York, Texas and Wisconsin offices of the Attorneys General were recognized for excellence in brief writing in the U.S. Supreme Court. Recipients of the Supreme Court Briefs Awards were: Solicitor General Kevin Newsom and Assistant Attorney General James Davis of Alabama; Solicitor General Barbara D. Underwood, Deputy Solicitor General Michelle Aronowitz, Assistant Solicitor General Cecelia Chang, Deputy Solicitor General Ben Gutman and Assistant Solicitor General Sasha Samberg-Champion of New York; Former Solicitor General Ted Cruz, Assistant Attorney General Sean Jordan, Assistant Attorney General Kristofer Monson, and Assistant Attorney General Adam Aston and Assistant Solicitor General Daniel Geyser of Texas; and Assistant Attorney General Christopher Wren of Wisconsin.

The Francis X. Bellotti Award, given to a former Attorney General who has served NAAG and worked diligently to further its vision and mission, was presented to former Tennessee Attorney General Knox Walkup.

The Association elects its officers yearly, through geographical rotation by region. Election of the four officers—President, President-Elect, Vice President and Immediate Past President—takes place at the annual NAAG Summer Meeting. The President appoints all standing and special committee chairs. Committees are charged with studying all substantive matters within their jurisdiction and recommending policy positions and other matters to the Attorneys General for action by the full Association.

The Executive Committee is charged with the management of Association operations and yearly approval of a program plan of goals, objectives, and activities to guide its work. The Executive Committee comprises the four NAAG officers, four regional delegates and three presidential appointees and the chair of the NAAG Mission Foundation, which supports the work of the Association.